Substations with the future built in

The heart of the power supply goes digital. Digitalized substations collect valuable data from the entire power grid. This means that the heart of the power supply can also become the heart of energy data communication – and can create added value.

Successfully manage the energy transition and migrate your substations into the digital world

Challenges for grid operators

The energy systems of the future are increasingly decarbonized, distributed, and digitalized. This fundamental transformation is in full swing and poses a wide range of challenges for all stakeholders. Only digitalization will allow us to master these challenges.
Ensuring that the digital transformation succeeds in the energy sector requires decisiveness, flexibility, and intelligent investments in smart digital technology. This is the only way to manage current tasks while creating enough leeway to actively shape the future. Investments in innovative technologies today create future-proof power grids characterized by reliability, efficiency, and sustainability.

Interview / Erlangen, February 1, 2019

Digital Substations - David Green provides insight

“Digital substations are the central hub for energy data communication. What advantages does this entail?” David Green, Research Manager at IHS Markit has the answers.

Substations with the future built in – a driver of the digital transformation

Substations are an integral component of power grids. They connect grids of differing voltage levels, and their controlling and coordinating function is vitally important to the stability of the overall system. That’s why they’re considered the heart of the power grid. Their digitalization is a decisive step toward successfully shaping the transformation of energy systems.

Digital over the entire life cycle

It turns out that a digitalized substation can be operated much more cost-effectively over its life cycle – from planning and operation to service. A digitalized substation also increases the availability, reliability, and sustainability of the entire power supply. That’s how it provides added value that’s relevant for utility companies and grid operators.

David Green from IHS Markit Ltd. on digital substations

“Digital substation is a massive part of being able to monitor your system in a more intelligent way.” Watch our latest interview with David Green, Research Manager at IHS Markit Ltd., a publicly-listed data and information provider based in London.

Six aspects

The three most important benefits of a digital substation

Manfred Unterweger, Head of Product Promotion Digital Substation at Siemens, explains the most important benefits of a digital substation: investment savings, reduced lifecycle costs, predictive maintenance and operational control.

The integrated 360° portfolio of products and solutions from Siemens covers all digitalization aspects of a substation. It enables operators to significantly increase the availability, efficiency, and sustainability of their grid.

Substations with the future built in: Your benefits

Decarbonization, decentralization, digitalization – everything that will shape the energy systems of the future is already highly concentrated in digital substations. With their availability, these substations are able to introduce cost-effectiveness and sustainability into the power supply. The foundation of this development is the fully exploited strength of digitalization.

IIoT

From the Internet of Things to the Internet of Energy

The Internet of Energy (IoE, also called the Industrial Internet of Things, or IIoT) is an Internet of Things specifically for the energy sector, and is the product of the progressive integration of operational and information technology. Smart grid components generate data that is visualized and analyzed in MindSphere, which prepares it to deliver more reliable, sustainable, and profitable grid operation.

Your benefits from smart system components and IT/OT convergence:

Data is collected and transmitted to a cloud-based platform like MindSphere

Data evaluation and analysis

Data analysis for system maintenance and grid operation

Generation of data-based strategies that create added value using the MindSphere Application Center

You will increase your profitability thanks to a longer system life cycle, greater availability, and higher efficiency

IoT-connectivity

SIPROTEC and SICAM products connect all the components of your substation to MindSphere and other cloud-based platforms – easily and directly. All you need to do is update the communication firmware with the standardized OPC UA PubSub protocol.

All the data is available in MindSphere and can be analyzed and visualized using the Grid Diagnostic Suite powered by MindSphere:

The SIPROTEC DigitalTwin is real time digital replica of a physical SIPROTEC 5 device including interfaces, functionality and algorithms. The new innovative cloud based SIPROTEC DigitalTwin offers comprehensive test of your SIPROTEC 5 devices as part of the energy automation system with high efficiency, performance, security and availability 24/7 from everywhere without any hardware.

Thought leader interview

“Modern energy systems generate huge amounts of data. Which advantages do you see?”

Marion Labatut is the Director of Policy Issues at Euro lectric, an international industry association which represents the interests of the electricity industry at a pan-European level and those of its affiliates and associates on other continents.

In this video, Marion Labatut explains, how the digital substation helps operate the grid in a more efficient way over the entire lifecycle of its assets. This includes the transparency and focus on investments as well as a fast reaction time for all events in the grid – even via remote maintenance. This not only avoids disruptions and downtimes but also allows various decentralized assets to be controlled in an integrated manner.

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